Second Battle of Arin
The Second Battle of Arin (CC 430) was a highly pivotal military confrontation between Humans and Beasts that lasted for only seven days on the surface of Planet Arin and in the nearby orbital space. It was the Silent War phase of the War of Prayer. The Second Battle of Arin was a decisive victory for Beasts. On the other hand, it was extremely catastrophic to Humans as it reversed the declaration of the Age of Humans and collapsed the ruling sociopolitical order as maintained by AE and Knight Order. The Absolute Defense Line crumbled from the inside of the safe zone itself and many core worlds were left vulnerable. The fall of Arin started the whole story and also serves as the background setting for the entire Knight Run series. The actual events of the battle was covered as an arc in the beginning chapters of Main Episode-0 Pray. Background Pray Mayer, while metamorphosing as E-34, used several excuses to remain secluded in her room where she was biding time for when to unleash her wrath. She began hacking into Central Order system and used the information gained to formulate a strategy that would successfully cripple the AE and Knights by targeting critical core planets and identifying substantial military forces. Simultaneously, she also started eroding the Core Temple and its foundation, the orbital fortress Avalon. She was able to convert the massive and powerful core of the fortress into her own hybrid nest-plant to create numerous high rank beasts remotely. While secluded in her room, E-34 also gave birth to her own EX-Type Zeroes: Fear and Blue Beetle. In CC 430, a solar storm was expected to pass near Arin which would disrupt communications with the planet. At the same time, Central Order controversially decided to proceed in updating the Arin Defense System which would temporarily paralyze its ability to detect and counter Beasts for the whole duration. Many AUA officers and knights initially objected to this decision but eventually agreed begrudgingly after considering the long-term benefits that the improved system would provide as well as the fact that Arin is in the safe zone far from the Beast frontiers. It is implied in the story that by this time, E-34 had already completed hacking into the Central Order system and that the Queen, not Mother Knight, gave the decision to proceed with the updates to deliberately sabotage Arin's capacity to resist. Coincidentally, AE launched the anticipated Talk Day, an annual event wherein warp gate transportation is prohibited for one day to make way for instantaneous communication regardless of distance in the universe. After finishing the Battle of Void, a combined AE and AUA fleet under the command of Admiral Jack Norton left Valtia to return to its Arin home port. Delays in using the warp gate prevented the fleet from reaching Arin earlier and potentially warning the alliance of the appearance of E-34. This opportunity allowed E-34 to consolidate her control over the Arin orbital space and completely isolate the planet from outside help. She then had free reign to erode the planet before the arrival of the New Alliance much later in the Third Battle of Arin. Battle Surface Invasion While communications and the Arin Defense System are down, E-34 initiated an order to all Knights in the Core Temple to return to their respective dormitory rooms and be on stand-by. Those who complied were all slaughtered by Beasts waiting for them. This alarmed some Knights who began investigating for infiltrators. They saw Core Temple's core already eroded and completely covered by brood larvae. Before they can flee, they were met by E-34 and her party: Fear, Blue Beetle, and the Queen's personal retinue of Type 5 Attendant-Guards. E-34 first secured the orbital space of Arin to isolate the planet unlike normal Queens who would prioritize eroding the surface. To this end, Guardians were deployed all over Arin's orbit. The Guardians' Jamil Organ compromised any contacts with the planet and their Chamild Organ visually camouflaged the erosion - making it appear that everything is normal with the planet. Nearby space facilities and satellites were also targeted. An observation satellite was able to capture and transmit photographs of Pray, now as E-34, accompanied by Beasts on the balcony of the eroded Core Temple. The satellite was destroyed shortly after. The Queen directed her Beasts to prevent the arrival of outside reinforcements by targeting the warp gate and warp marker but the Beasts only managed to destroy the gate. Deputy Chief Kamad of the Central Order and his twin sister, Master Knight Kamal, led a massive counter-attack by AUA, AE, and surviving Knights forces to destroy the Plants launching Guardians. They also planned to storm into and retake Core Temple. The twins performed their signature combo surprise attack on several high class beasts but their charge was halted by EX-Type Zero Blue Beetle who used a Pray Style Triangle-Torn Thrust technique to impale the two Master Knights with the Amethyst Lance. Blue Beetle then taunted the counter-attack force by flinging the corpses of the twins to the lead battleship's bridge windshield before it proceeded to destroy the whole fleet. Other Beasts then finished the rest of the shocked forces who thereafter frantically retreated. The Chief of the Central Order, Master Knight Lime Zail, was MIA in the initial E-34 attack. May Zail then assumed general leadership of Arin's defense as acting Chief of the Central Order. She also coordinated the scattered AUA and AE forces in conducting guerrilla warfare and helping civilian survivors. Much of the survivors were gathered at a seabed base owned and operated directly under the Zail Family. Orbital Superiority In the course of securing Arin's orbit space, Beasts attacked civilian and military space vessels. One such vessel was the 7th Colony of Arin, an orbital residential colony used for housing the family of those related to the maintenance of the Arin warp gate. Knight Jill McKellen and her brother, Allen McKellen, was at the colony when a single Beast No. 387 stealth warship launched its attack. The staff of the colony, unaware of E-34's erosion, were surprised as the beast seemingly came from Arin. Security forces were sent to intercept but the No. 387 already manged to break through the colony's shield and inject a pod inside the hull. Additional pods were prevented from entering as the security forces finally destroyed the No. 387. However, the single pod injected contained a troop of Beast No. 600s led by a high rank Beast Type 77. Under the guidance of the Type 77, the beasts were able to easily subdue the Cherrydogs and Battle dolls to the bewilderment of the staff. The Beasts then began massacring the inhabitants. Jill defeated the Type 77 but not before it was able to sever off her arm and kill Allen. Jill and the colony's security forces quarantined the colony of any remaining Beasts. Admiral Jack Norton, commanding a combined AE and AUA fleet that participated in the Battle of Void, was supervising the fleet's repairs and maintenance at the AE core planet Valtia. After this was finished, the fleet began making course through warp gate to its home port in Arin. While en route in the warp field, XO Gawain warned Admiral Norton that the fleet detected strange interference from the Arin exit. The warp field then started contracting which immediately crushed two warships. Admiral Norton then ordered the fleet to assume an optimized shield formation to resist the collapsing field while attempting to speed up warp travel. Upon emerging at the Arin warp gate, the fleet was subjected to a volley of particle beams from more than 20,000 beast warships orbiting Arin. Admiral Norton gave orders for a synchronized evasive maneuver and to withdraw away from the engagement. He then noted that the beasts were not pursuing them but were attacking the warp gate instead - the fleet was merely in the way. Aftermath The E-34's attack prioritized areas of political, military, and industrial importance. As such, there were a huge number of civilians who were able to flee but are left scattered and roaming aimlessly. Most of the survivors were protected by the Zail Family who committed their own resources to save Arin. The Zails also took over command of the AUA and AE as the only authoritative structure left functioning after the fall of Central Order and of the Arin planetary government. Guerrilla warfare was generally employed while military units withdrew to the Zail seabed base to reorganize for a possible opportunity to counter-attack in the future. Admiral Norton's fleet rendezvoused with other stranded ships and scattered AE and AUA units in the nearby sectors of outer space. The fleet was further enlarged by absorbing a passing Turin Immigration Fleet and the drifting 7th Colony of Arin which had just survived a Beast attack. Under the command of Admiral Norton, the fleet employed hit-and-run tactics to protect the warp marker, a beacon transmitting the coordinates of Arin for FTL travel guidance, in hopes that a relief force would soon arrive. Information regarding the appearance of E-34 began spreading within the top echelons of AE and the Knights a week after E-34 attacked. The fall of Arin and of Central Order was not disclosed to the general public to prevent mass hysteria. All requests to contact or travel to Arin were ordered to be denied. Master Knight Anne Mayer, who also participated at the Battle of Void, just recently announced her retirement from being a Knight at a dinner party at Valtia. She was waiting for her transportation to Arin to finally reunite with her beloved Pray when her travel schedule was abruptly suspended. Immediately afterwards, she was approached and briefed by AUA Lt. Col. Dyne of the situation. Lt. Col. Dyne requested, for Anne to participate in an independent AUA mission to retake their home world "not as a Knight but as a Colonel and War Adviser of Arin". The AUA Expedition Forces who were deployed before the attack were already itching to reinforce Arin without waiting for AE or Knight Order as the two were both too busy politicking in the midst of the power vacuum that Central Order left in its wake. Gallery Quotes Category:Event Records Category:Human-Beast conflict